How to install older versions of Internet Explorer?

I currently have Internet Explorer 11 installed, but I need Version 8 or 7 for some onlinework.

Do I have to uninstall Internet Explorer 11 prior to installing 8 or 7?

Solution 1:

You can't install old versions of Internet Explorer on modern versions of Windows.

Microsoft publishes free virtual machine images which allow you to launch a virtual computer running whichever version of IE you want: http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/download/details.aspx?id=11575

It's a bit of a pain, but the only way to truely test how a site works on <=IE7 as the emulation in modern versions of IE is not 100% reliable.

Solution 2:

In my experience, Internet Explorer is difficult to uninstall but is relatively easy to roll back to previous versions. Depending on what version of (presumably) Windows you're running (I'm using Windows 7 Professional x64):

• Search in Start for "Windows Update" and hit enter
• Click on "View update history"
• Click on "see Installed Updates" towards the top

From here you can roll back to an earlier version of Internet Explorer. Each time you remove an IE update, IE will revert to the next-earliest version (so for you starting with IE 11, you will first go back to IE 10, then 9, ect).

Solution 3:

There's an article on microsoft.com which describes 5 of the more popular ways to test websites with different versions of internet explorer: http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/developers/articles/5-ways-to-test-your-website-in-old-versions-of-ie

Basically, those methods are:

• Using DEVELOPER TOOLS (press F12 in IE8,9,10,11)
• Usign the http://modern.ie scanner
• Working with virtual machines (can take up much disk space and require additional licenses)
• Hosted virtual machines (free trials on modern.ie)
• Using Windows XP Mode (similar to running virtual machines)

There are also 3rd party browsers that you can download, that can emulate the rendering of all different IE versions. I can't say that those all work perfectly, IMO you're best of with the real deal (i.e. using one of the above methods).